The half-life t1/2 is the time required for a quantity to reduce to half its initial value. It describes how quickly unstable atoms undergo, or how long stable atoms survive, radioactive decay.
However, the half-life usually describes the decay of discrete entities.
A half-life period is defined in terms of probability.
The radioactive decay equation is
or
where
The basic principle is that isotopes/radionuclides are produced at a known rate and also decay at a known rate.
The half-life formula is then
The larger the decay constant
Accordingly, measuring the concentration of these cosmogenic nuclides in a rock sample and accounting for the flux of the cosmic rays and the half-life of the nuclide, makes it possible to estimate how long the sample has been exposed to the cosmic rays.
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